Addresses:

Career

Began writing songs, c. 1991; made singing debut with Schools of
Thought, c. 1992; stint in punk band as young teen; briefly member of
Basic Instinct; signed to LaFace label as part of R&B trio
Choice, 1996; became solo artist, c. 1998; released debut solo album as
Pink,
Can't Take Me Home,
2000; released
M!ssundaztood,
2001; released
Try This,
2003.

Awards:

MTV Music Video Awards for best female video and best dance video, 2002;
Grammy Award for best female rock vocal performance for
"Trouble," 2004.

Sidelights

Though pop/R&B singer Pink did not always sport her signature
pink hair, her reputation as a woman with edgy tendencies did not
change. After a difficult early life, Pink emerged as a popular singer
with a big voice and distinctive persona in the early 2000s. With three
very individual albums to her credit—each of which sold into the
millions world–wide—Pink was a popular black sheep. As

Pink

Lorraine Ali wrote in
Newsweek,
"A healthy dose of obstinacy and attitude—and a
maybe–not–so–healthy amount of anger—have
made the 23–year–old Pink (born Alecia Moore) one of the
current pop scene's only credible anti–heroes."

Born in 1979, Pink was the product of the stormy marriage of James and
Judy Moore. She grew up the same city she was born in, Doylestown,
Pennsylvania, located outside of Philadelphia. Her parents'
marital problems began when she was a toddler, but she remained
especially close to and influenced by her father, a Vietnam War veteran
who worked in the insurance industry. He taught her many survival
skills, including how to fight, use knives and guns, and break wrists.
He also played guitar and introduced her to the music of Bob Dylan and
Don McLean. From an early age, Pink was seen as tough.

Before Pink was ten years old, her parents divorced. She never talked
about what went wrong or consciously realized how it affected her until
years later. Pink began acting out within a few years. Though she had
asthma, she began smoking when she was nine years old, a habit she kept
up for many years. Pink got her first tattoo when she was 12, and her
tongue pierced the same year. Pink also began writing
songs when she was 12. She made her singing debut with a rap group,
Schools of Thought, headed by Philly club dancer/friend Skratch, when
she was 13.

By the time Pink was 14, she was doing drugs and running away from home
on a regular basis. She was also arrested on several occasions for
rebellious misdeeds. Music remained an important part of her life. Pink
explored many music scenes, from rock, punk, and rave, to hip hop, folk,
R&B, and gospel. She also liked to go to clubs and hang out with
skateboarders. She rode skateboards, and also participated in a number
of sports including kickboxing. Pink lived with her mother after her
parents' divorce, but got kicked out when she was 15 years old
because of the lifestyle she was living. Pink later admitted that she
was a wild and difficult teenager. After briefly living with friends and
relatives, Pink moved in with her father.

By this time in her life, Pink was determined to be a musician, though
she also held mundane jobs like working at McDonald's to help
support herself. After stints in a punk band and as a member of Basic
Instinct, a vocal group signed to MCA, she joined a woman–only
R&B trio called Choice when she was 16 years old because this
group seemed to have the best chance of success. In 1996, Choice was
signed to the LaFace label by L.A. Reid, a successful R&B
producer.

It was during her two–year stint with Choice that Pink took on
her colorful nickname. There are several versions of the story of how
she came to be called Pink. At the time, she had pink hair, though
sources also say that she took the name because of the character Mr.
Pink in
Reservoir Dogs.
Another version claimed that she was so named because she turned pink
after being embarrassed in front of a boy she liked. While the name Pink
stuck, she did not have as much success with Choice. The group struggled
with creative conflicts, but Pink was able to rediscover her love of
songwriting when one of the artists they were working with, Darryl
Simmons, had her co–write a song with him, "Just To Be
Loving You," for the group.

After two years, Choice could not make it work with producers. Reid
believed that Pink had a chance as a solo artist and began grooming her
for such a career. However, Reid and Pink each had a different vision
for the direction of her solo career. It was a harsh education for Pink
on how the music industry really worked. She believed that Reid wanted
her to compromise who she was. Despite their differences, Reid continued
to have a hand in the way Pink's career developed even after he
became president of Arista Records. Pink also joined the label.

Pink's first album, 2000's
Can't Take Me Home,
was full of slick, overproduced songs, including the first single
"There You Go." Most were
dance–pop–R&B numbers aimed at a teen audience. The
songs did not say much and
Home
was a critical failure, but the album managed to sell two to three
million records worldwide. One point of controversy among record buyers
was Pink's ethnicity. She told T'cha Dunlevy of the
Gazette,
"That's part of the mystery of Pink. Nobody knows what I
am. Everybody thinks I'm what they are. White people think
I'm white, Spanish people think I'm Spanish. Some black
people think I'm black. I don't really care. Just listen
to my music."

While Pink wrote or co–wrote seven of the 13 tracks on the album,
she did not like how the record sounded and wanted to take more control
of her career. She did not want to be a typical
created–and–controlled R&B singer, but be honest
and refreshing. Despite these qualms, the success of
Can't Take Me Home
proved to Pink that she could sing and sell records.

To take charge of her career direction, Pink fired her manager and hired
a new one, the successful Roger Davies. She also stood up to her record
company so that she could create an album that better reflected her
personality and sound. She wanted to be more rock than polished
R&B/pop. Of her struggles, she told Robert Hilburn of the
Los Angeles Times,
"Everything in this business is designed to encourage you to
play along. They know people are so hungry for stardom that
they'll just follow the record industry game. I know because I
was ready to do anything when I started out. But I found that selling
records wasn't enough. I told myself after the first record that
I'd rather go back home and start all over again than be trapped
in a one–dimensional world any longer."

To that end, Pink chose to work with Linda Perry as a producer and
co–writer of eight songs on Pink's second record,
2001's
M!ssundaztood.
Perry had been part of the rock group 4 Non Blondes which had minimal
mainstream success in the early 1990s, and she had been struggling on
the fringes of the music industry for a number of years. With Perry,
Pink retained an R&B–dance–pop oriented sound, but
she also became harder, edgier, and with a rock sound accompanying
lyrics that better reflected who she
was. Pink sang about herself, her rough teenage years, and her problems
with her family and the music industry, often in an emotionally intense
fashion.

Critics and audiences responded to the change in direction of
Pink's sound.
M!ssundaztood
more than eight million copies worldwide, with five million copies in
the United States alone. As Alexis Petridis wrote in the
Guardian,
"Whatever you made of the actual music on
Missundaztood,
it was a brave and radical career shift. Despite the mainstream,
crowd–pleasing sound, there was an undeniable sense of shock
about the album—it had been a long time since any pop artist had
attempted to make music whose primary emotion was anger."

M!ssundaztood
produced a number of hit singles for Pink. One was the first hit single
"Get the Party Started," which became a club hit, then a
huge pop hit. Another hit single was "Just Like a Pill,"
in which Pink sang about her personal insecurities. "Family
Portrait," a hit worldwide, was about her parents' marital
problems and its effect on her. The song was very hard for Pink to sing,
but also was cathartic for her.

Following up such an intense record proved difficult for Pink. In 2003,
she released
Try This,
an album that featured a number of musical styles recorded primarily in
her own home studio. While Pink again worked with Perry on three tracks,
seven songs on the record were co–written and produced by Tim
Armstrong, a punk rock icon. Armstrong also played guitar and provided
some vocals. The songs ranged from the punk rock–oriented
"Trouble" to the R&B–type ballads
"Waiting for Love" and "Love Song."
"Oh My God" was recorded with rapper/performance artist
Peaches, while "God is a DJ" was a pop/rock anthem.

While many critics praised
Try This,
others pointed out that it sounded much like Pink's second
record but without the danger and the radio–friendly hooks.
Still, many reviewers found much to like, including her attitude, image,
and her work ethic. Joan Anderman of the
Boston Globe
wrote, "In a pop music landscape littered with
boardroom–approved sex kittens and photo–ready
rebels—yes, Pink is all that, too—the
24–year–old singer has an actual personality. She's
cheeky and funny and blunt, all of which infuses her third album,
Try This
.…"
Newsweek
concurred: "Thanks to boot–stomping tempos, hissing
guitar and rough–and–tumble melodies, the music finally
matches Pink's acerbic lyrics and overall bad attitude."

Though Pink impressed many critics, the record–buying public was
less impressed. The first single, "Trouble," only reached
number 16 on the
Billboard
Top 40 charts, and was not much of a hit on radio either. "God
is a DJ" reached the top five of the charts in the United
Kingdom. The slower sales of her singles did not bother Pink. She told
Nekesa Mumbi Moody of the Associated Press, "I don't judge
myself on how well my songs do at radio, or how much my album sells. A
failure and a success is all how you look at it. I've been
creative to my highest potential at this point of my life, and
I'm super proud of myself for making it this far."

Pink planned on touring extensively in support of
Try This
and remained sure of her vision for her musical career. She told
CNN.com
, "I'd rather fall down for what I believe in and for what
makes me tick. Is that smart? Who knows. Might not be. But
there's still some fear in me—I want to be understood. I
want to be heard."